After a lot of research we purchased this house for my daughter. We are very happy with the purchase and this house has a lot of features. Its been outside for a while and...Read complete review

After a lot of research we purchased this house for my daughter. We are very happy with the purchase and this house has a lot of features. Its been outside for a while and always looks clean and like new.

VS

Most Liked Negative Review

Very cute....but

After many, many hours of researching playhouses for my daughter's 2nd Christmas we finally decided on the Storybook Cottage. I have extremely high standards and I really try to buy the best quality when...Read complete review

After many, many hours of researching playhouses for my daughter's 2nd Christmas we finally decided on the Storybook Cottage. I have extremely high standards and I really try to buy the best quality when it comes to big purchases. I liked that it wasn't gender specific and from the reviews I was really looking forward to a really high quality, nicely sized playhouse. With that being said...the house seemed a lot smaller than I was expecting. It easily fits 3 small sized children but there is not much room to move around. You have to push the door bell a certain way for the small bell to ring. The phone is hardly worth the effort...it is not loud at all. The table inside is so flimsy, little children naturally want to lean on it and it almost bends in two. The material doesn't seem sturdy at all. Yet, my daughter LOVES it and has played in it everyday for the past year. It is small enough to keep in her bedroom. The price seems too high for the quality and size...but we still love it! Looking back I probably would not have spent this much for this particular playhouse.

One of the best features is the door. Keeping each other out is fun for them. The window is great so the parents can make sure everything is ok inside. They love the sink and the clock inside. Couldn't be happier. Thank you!

Have older model. Use to have 2 chairs inside that swung out from wall by window. Great idea but the chairs were very flimsy. Seemed to always fall off wall! Had to keep putting them back on. Finally threw them out. Better just buying small lawn chairs

For the money I paid, I really expected more in the actual sturdiness of the walls and table. I have a 14 yr old boy and a 3 yr old boy. I know Step2 has seen better days in construction of things. The walls are sooo flimsy and full of very little cracks and holes. The table if pressed even lightly torks the window sill from which it is attached and I'm afraid it might crack if I'm not right in the house with my son to keep warning him about this. The same goes with the all in one stove and sink which sits on and hangs out a bit of the window sill. Too much pressure and there is a lot of torking going on but not to the point I'm afraid of the house breaking, just the sink/stove popping out. Plus the stove/sink combo looks like a nice rain collector since it sits partly out the window. It does have a hole in the sink but there are other areas to collect water and the stickers on the stove are going to be ruined as well. There are three main windows and only one has shutters, not a huge deal, just putting that out there. Also for the money I wish it were roomier. I'm a big mommy and I do fit in there with my son but I cant see more than 3 children at a time comfortably in there. Bottom line is I really regret this purchase. Here are my pros: It's attractive. Its definatly cute inside with its fireplace and built-in shelfs. And the doorbell is a cute feature. That's about that. I'm no stranger to Step2 and this was my first dissapointment from them. Waste of money. Very regrettful. Wish I could have seen it upclose before I bought it. If I'm correct and you can get your hands on and older moldel you will be pleased because I don't think the walls are thin and have the potential for cracking and tiny holes and there is a secret door. We've only had this house for 2 days. I hope it holds for up for awhile.

I also want to add that it matches perfect with the Naturally Playful Woodland Climber and Naturally Playful Picnic Table with Umbrella that we purchased seperately from someone selling them on the [@].

SHEILA S:Purchased this house last April and there is no secret door on the fireplace just the one red door in the front. Back of the house is solid with 4 small triangle holes at the top. Left side of the house window has shutters,on the right side the window does not have shutters play sink is under that window. We put 2 brown storage stools on either side of the table ( table is on the left side on the house and it folds down for additional square footage) to store toys/seating. We have it inside and strung white x-mas lights thru the triangles for more light. Only con was the shipping truck fee and the extra fee to bring to the garage. Box is very heavy, easy to put together though. Colors are as shown. Doorbell works, put a toy mail box outside the house. Hope the info helps in your decision making!Apr 29, 2013

Raymond Q asked:I plan to build a wooden platform as a floor for this playhouse for my granddaughter. Is there some tabs or other attachment mechanisms inside or outside this playhouse that will allow me to attach it to the wooden platform? I have looked through the assembly PDF, reviews, and previous Q&A's and don't see any reference to anchoring this playhouse at its bottom. Thank you for any advice on this.Apr 30, 2014

Elcindra S:No Raymond, sorry! There are no tabs at the base. Also, the assembly also required a little more than what the instructions stated. For example, extra holes had to be drilled in order for some of the panels to correctly allign. But, it's an excellent choice for a play house! It's sturdy, roomy, and just adorable! Lastly, be prepared to purchase the Step 2 chairs (seperately) to go with the flip down table. The small brown ones on there site fit and match perfectly and were less than $30! Hope this helps! Happy Building! :)May 2, 2014

Melissa T:There are no places that I see to attach a wooden platform. It's not made to be attached to something. and I don't think that is a safe option. You don't want the little one to have to step up into the home and then for it to slide on the wooden platform. There is a small lip to step over to get into the cottage. We have astro turf under ours so that it doesn't have the ground as the floor. Hope that helps. May 1, 2014

Hallie K.:We attached ours to a wooden platform. My husband drilled the house walls into it. So, he went at a 45* angle in a couple of place on all four wall and its not moving, so hopefully we aren't either.Jul 11, 2014

rcpntr:Went to collect this from the store today. Heads up to others - the box does NOT fit in the back of a Honda Oddyssey (with seats out, back is 5' x 8', it was about 3" too wide), but it does all fit if you take it out of the box - and then you don't need to remove the middle row to get it in :) I can't wait for our girls to see it on their birthday!Sep 24, 2013

Debora C:I can't totally remember but we got it home in my husbands escalade so it should be fine. We didn't need a pick up truck. I recommend building a small deck/ base for it to keep the dirt off of it more. We are building one soon. Sep 11, 2013

Kimberly T:I didn't find it difficult to assemble so I don't think it would be hard to do as long as you keep the instructions. Please note that I never disassembled ours because we use it outside. My only concern would be that the more often you assemble and disassemble it, the screw holes might not be as tight as they need to be to keep the cottage secure. Hope this helps.Dec 3, 2013

A shopper asked:The dimensions are indicated as 55 w and 50.5 deep. From the pictures it looks as if the door is located on the less wide side- the 50.5 deep side. It is difficult to be sure from the photo- can anyone verify this for me? Thanks!Jun 2, 2014

Amy R asked:Does the area dimension 55w X 50.50d include the exterior seating area? I want to build the foundation before assembling the playhouse. If the outside seating area does in fact extend beyond the given area dimension, what is the exterior measurement of the extension wall?Nov 17, 2014